Kaiser Permanente: Supporting Breastfeeding with Partnership for a Healthier America

Kaiser Permanente has signed a commitment with the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) to support breastfeeding as a benchmark of hospital quality and a key factor in preventing childhood obesity. According to Edward Ellison, MD, executive medical director-elect, Kaiser Permanente Southern California region,

“At Kaiser Permanente, we are committed to giving every baby the healthiest start possible. We believe in making the healthy choice the easy choice for mothers and families, so we are striving to support breastfeeding in our hospitals. We also promote and support breastfeeding as a key component of our comprehensive strategy to prevent childhood obesity.”

Kaiser Permanente has pledged that:

• By Jan. 1, 2013, all of Kaiser Permanente’s 29 hospitals that offer maternal and child health services will be designated as Baby-Friendly, and/or participate in the Joint Commission’s Perinatal Core Measures program, which requires participating hospitals to report their rates of exclusive breastfeeding at discharge.
• Kaiser Permanente will establish a system-wide performance improvement program focusing on the development and implementation of evidence-based hospital breastfeeding practices.
• Kaiser Permanente will develop and make publicly available a hospital breastfeeding practices guide that documents lessons learned and operational strategies that other systems can use to improve maternity care.
• To ensure accountability, Kaiser Permanente will include rates of exclusive breastfeeding at discharge as a core quality measure on its Quality Dashboard, which will be reviewed on a quarterly basis along with other hospital quality measures.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Institute of Medicine have all recommended breastfeeding as an important component in preventing childhood obesity as well. According to Lawrence A. Soler, CEO of PHA,

“We know that the risk of obesity is much lower for children who are breastfed, and...enabling more moms who want to breastfeed is critical to bringing down obesity rates. Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to make breastfeeding a priority for each child born in one of their hospitals has potential to make a very big impact, and we’re pleased they are such a strong partner in fighting childhood obesity.”

Is your hospital Baby-Friendly yet?

SMHC: First Baby-Friendly Hospital on Island of Montreal

St. Mary’s Hospital Center (SMHC) has become the first hospital on the island of Montreal to be designated Baby-Friendly. At the announcement, Marie-France Brizard, Manager of Maternal/Child Care Program thanked her,

"fellow hospital staff for your support and collaboration. You played an essential role in the certification process. This success belongs to you and your contribution and dedication will be a role model for other institutions who wish to become Baby Friendly Hospital. It is our collective efforts that have earned us this globally recognized accreditation that speaks to our commitment to give new borns the best possible start to life.”

Bon travail, SMHC!

Newly Baby-Friendly: Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital

In November, Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital in Valencia, CA became one of the nine designated Baby-Friendly hospitals in Los Angeles County. According to Mary Beth Sweet, a lactation specialist at the hospital,

"Every step of the way, we had full administrative support. We have a vested interest in providing our community with the education and support to our breastfeeding mothers by helping to improve the overall health for mothers and babies in our care; Baby-Friendly enables us to continue and excel at doing just that.”

Through its breastfeeding efforts and activities, Henry Mayo increased its in-hospital breastfeeding initiation rate to 96 percent, with 76 percent of new mothers exclusively breastfeeding at discharge by the end of FY 2011.

Please join us in commending Henry Mayo for their impressive achievement!

Baby-Friendly: Hospital of Saint Raphael

Congratulations to the Hospital of Saint Raphael in New Haven, CT for becoming the first hospital in New Haven County to be deemed Baby-Friendly. As the fourth Baby-Friendly hospital in Connecticut, Saint Raphael has successfully promoted breastfeeding and mother-child bonding. According to Annmarie Golioto, M.D., a physician at Saint Raphael’s Dr. Romeo A. and Lena B. Vidone Birth Center and medical director of the Newborn Intensive Care Unit,

“This designation tells the community that we are completely dedicated to giving babies the best start to a healthy life. Providing infants with human milk gives them the most complete nutrition possible. Breast milk provides the optimal mix of nutrients and antibodies necessary for a baby to thrive.”

Please join us in applauding Saint Raphael for their achievement!

Congratulations: Newly Designated Baby-Friendly Hospitals

We would like to commend Naval Hospital (NH) Jacksonville in Florida and Enloe Medical Center in California for recently being designated Baby-Friendly hospitals. Please join us in applauding their achievements!